The Dharma Bums

The Dharma Bums, a novel written by Jack Kerouac, published in 1958 is a story about the authors later known as "beatniks" so close to fame they could almost touch it, and seeking to find some sort of spiritual awaking. The spiritual awakening these characters discover is inspired by 'Japhy Ryder' who is later identified as Gary Synder, a Zen lunatic, who sparked Kerouac to begin his own journey on the Buddhist path. Of all Kerouac's novels, he uses characters of his real life friends to exemplify the experiences that occur in the journeys of his life (*Click here to see the real life Alias'*). Gary Synder plays a large role in this book as 'Japhy Ryder' along with Allen Ginsburg, 'Allvah Goldbook,' and Neal Cassidy as 'Cody Pomeroy.' Kerouac names himself 'Ray Smith' and the book follows his journey to San Francisco where Japhy teaches him of the Buddhist way. The novels main theme is the idea of spirituality that Japhy introduces to Ray. These two characters play an interesting role in that they both are seeking enlightenment trying to deny their worldly desires to find purity and goodness. Ray is just beginning the Buddhist path while Japhy is lives it day to day, their contrasting characters represent Ray's uncertainty and experience in this awakening while Japhy already knows the truth of the Dharma (the teachings of the Buddha). On the other hand, Goldbook represents Kerouac's own duality of self. He struggles with the idea of not being ready to give up his worldly desires, of sex, drugs, money, a warm bed, and nice clothes, but at the same time sees the benefits of the Buddhist path. Goldbook represents the material things that make life worth living, and his aim is to wait as long as he can before he changes his way of living.

Towards the end, Ray comes to term with these conflicting livelihoods and his spiritual awaking occurs when Japhy and he embarks on climb to the top of Matterhorn Peak in the Sierras. Japhys is the first to arrive at the top and Kerouac fearing his assent to the top clings to the mountain and realizes that its impossible to "fall of this mountain." This clinging and realization are symbolic of the Buddhist precept that attachment to the emotions of the world only lead to suffering. He lets go of his fear and reaches the top of the mountain proving to be an amazing accomplishment both mentally and physically.

''Yeah man, you know to me a mountain is a Buddha. Think of the patience, hundreds of thousands of years just sitting there bein perfectly perfectly silent and like praying for all living creatures in that silence and just waiting for us to stop all our frettin and foolin.'' ( Japhy Ryder)

After coming back to civilization both Japhy and Ray experience the suffering that prevades in the material world. Japhy leaves for Japan to teach as a Zen Buddhism and Kerouac decides to follow the path Japhy once took by climbing Desolation Peak in the Cascades. He becomes fire lookout, living in solitude and inner peace. The story ends with Ray in complete happiness realizing the truth of the path he has chosen to follow; the Buddhist way of morality, concentration, and compassion.

"At night I put my poncho over my rain jacket and warm clothing and wen out to meditate on the foggy top of the world. Here indeed was the Great Truth Cloud, Dharmamega, the ultimate goal."

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"I felt like lying down by the side of the trail and remembering it all. The woods do that to you, they always look familiar, long lost, like the face of a long-dead relative, like an old dream, like a piece of forgotten song drifting across the water, most of all like golden eternities of past childhood or past manhood and all the living and the dying and the heartbreak that went on a million years ago and the clouds as they pass overhead seem to testify (by their own lonesome familiarity) to this feeling."

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